Rookie safety Alonzo Lawrence signed with Detroit Lions looking for a fresh start

Justin Rogers | MLive.comRookie safety Alonzo Lawrence path to the NFL has certainly been the road less taken.

ALLEN PARK -- Rookie safety Alonzo Lawrence split his turbulent college career between three schools, but he never ventured far from home where he starred as a defensive back and wide receiver for George County High School in Lucedale, Miss.

Reports and rumors circulated that Lawrence was kicked off Alabama's team for violating a team rule, but he insists the decision to leave the program was his own.

"I saw a lot of people saying I'm a bad guy, that coach Saban threw me off the team for violating the rules," Lawrence said. "It really was, I just kind of left because me and him didn't get along."

Lawrence will freely admit one of his biggest disagreements with Saban was about playing time. The talented defensive back thought he should be a starter. Still, Lawrence feels he was able to learn plenty from Saban before transferring.

"He's one of the better coaches in the nation and he taught me a lot," Lawrence said. "He made it easier when I transferred to my other schools to play the position."

The shaky start to his once-promising college career took a turn for the worse at Southern Miss. After being denied an exemption to bypass the NCAA's requirement for transfers to sit out a season, Lawrence fell into a funk. Without football to keep him focused, his grades slipped. He failed a few classes making him academically ineligible.

Instead of sticking it out, Lawrence again opted to transfer, this time to Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College.

Far removed from the spotlight, Lawrence got back to doing what he loved, making plays on the football field. Last season, he was named an NJCAA All-American after making 47 tackles and intercepting seven passes. That performance was also enough to get him back on the radar of multiple NFL teams.

But Lawrence, who likes to say he's taken the dirt road to the NFL, chose the Detroit Lions over as many as 20 other franchises. Not quite the destination you'd expect for a kid who had previously stuck close to home.

"I wanted to get away and just start a new life," Lawrence said. "It's a new me. I grew up into a better person. I just wanted to get away from everything and start over."

It's appropriate Lawrence is open to starting over since the Lions are asking the 6-foot-2, 215 pounder to transition to safety, a position he's never played.

"He's big, he's got really good speed," Lions coach Jim Schwartz said. "Like a lot of these guys, he's trying to learn a lot of stuff in a short period of time, but he's got some physical skills that we can work with."

Lawrence knows he has a lot to learn. He's used to playing on an island as a cornerback, but now he'll need to get more comfortable playing in space. That said, he sees one big benefit of the move inside.

"I was a cornerback, now I'm moving to safety, so it will make it a little bit easier for me to hold tight ends than a guy that runs a 4.3."

It will be an uphill battle for Lawrence -- despite his physical tools and high ceiling -- to crack the Lions' 53-man roster, but the team does lack depth at the safety position. If nothing else, his size and skill set make him a great candidate for the practice squad. It's not like another detour on the dirt road could deter him at this point.